multiple chams in one cage??
- Thread starter erik775
- Start date
erik775
Established Member
erik775
Established Member
yeah i know ...how much room would u say i need for 2?
camimom
New Member
i would do no less than a 5x5x8
but... thats a huge cage.... and honestly, id rather free range them at that point.
Zen Reptiles
Avid Member
I have experimented with this a little and I have found that although most people say 1 male 2 or 3 females....that is the worst.
What you CAN do, is a few males together. Trick is to raise them together and give them each their own basking spots.
Some zoos I went to in Europe, particularly the Amsterdam Zoo did it very well, had a big 5x8x10 (approx) cage with several veiled males, and a separate cage the same size with about 8 female veileds. Everyone was happy, colorful, etc.
I did notice that the males appeared to do better, they were more colorful, and 'cool with it'. The females, some were dark and clearly not doing as well.
Totally opposite of what is accepted in the chameleon hobby, but it works if you do it right.
What you CAN do, is a few males together. Trick is to raise them together and give them each their own basking spots.
Some zoos I went to in Europe, particularly the Amsterdam Zoo did it very well, had a big 5x8x10 (approx) cage with several veiled males, and a separate cage the same size with about 8 female veileds. Everyone was happy, colorful, etc.
I did notice that the males appeared to do better, they were more colorful, and 'cool with it'. The females, some were dark and clearly not doing as well.
Totally opposite of what is accepted in the chameleon hobby, but it works if you do it right.
Olimpia
Biologist & Ecologist
I kept 4 panther males in a room about 10x7' and they all did pretty well the 9-10 months it lasted. Then I moved and decided I preferred to go back to cages over free ranging, not to mention that I sold/gave away most of my panthers. But before I set them all loose in the room I would open up all the cage doors and let them roam the room at will with me sitting in there having coffee or whatnot. They all were pretty comfortable with each other so that's why I decided to go ahead with it.
So I suggest you test everyone's reactions to each other for a few weeks before you consider a change. Some males are a lot more aggressive than others, so their personalities are going to have a lot to do with it. Some of mine were very aggressive towards me but not at all towards each other.
Also, if you go ahead with it make sure you have lots of basking spots - at least one per male in there. They may bask together or they may want nothing to do with each other, it's up to them to decide.
All this being said, I wouldn't try it until I feel I am sure that I know my chameleons well, so that I can spot differences in habit or personality that may signal issues. It's different making sure a group is ok over a single individual in a cage.
So I suggest you test everyone's reactions to each other for a few weeks before you consider a change. Some males are a lot more aggressive than others, so their personalities are going to have a lot to do with it. Some of mine were very aggressive towards me but not at all towards each other.
Also, if you go ahead with it make sure you have lots of basking spots - at least one per male in there. They may bask together or they may want nothing to do with each other, it's up to them to decide.
All this being said, I wouldn't try it until I feel I am sure that I know my chameleons well, so that I can spot differences in habit or personality that may signal issues. It's different making sure a group is ok over a single individual in a cage.
carol5208
Chameleon Enthusiast
I have a very large outdoor cage and I cannot put my two chams together no way. I just got the other one so they do not know each other at all but there they are flaring and gaping at each other as soon as they spot each other. I would not do it unless hey show no aggression toward each other which would be rare. There are a few people on here like JannB who has two of her chams that get along great. i guess you would could try and just see how it goes.
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